Wedge breech block for guns with exchangeable ring packings



an- 1969 E. BARTELS 3,420,139

WEDGE BREECH BLOCK FOR GUNS WITH EXCHANGEABLE RING PACKINGS Filed Dec." 6, 1967 Sheet of 2 Inventor- WW wt E. BARTELS Jan. 7, 1969 WEDGE BREECH BLOCK FOR GUNS WITH EXCHANGEABLE RING PACKINGS Sheet Filed Dec. 6, 1967 hvenlor: km W United States Patent R 44,800 US. Cl. 8917 Claims Int. Cl. F411 11/00; F4111 11/06' ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A wedge breech block device for guns which comprises a breech block wedge including a liner and a gun barrel secured at its rear end in the breech ring. A barrel bottom is provided which has a recess. A ring packing is received in the recess of the barrel bottom. A locking member is displaceably guided in the breech block wedge parallel to the axis of the liner and the locking member falls into the recess in case the ring packing is missing, at the start of the closing procedure of the breech block and prevents a further movement of the breech block.

The present invention relates to a wedge breech block for guns with exchangeable ring packings, in general, and to such wedge breech block having a recess in the barrel bottom, in particular.

Ring: packings, which seal the inner tube of the gun liner relative to the breech block, consist usually of very heat resistant steel alloys. Nevertheless, they are subjected to wear and must be replaced from time to time.

During the renewal of the packing ring the danger exists, that the packing ring, which has become unserviceable, is removed, yet the insertion of a new packing is omitted.

It is one object of the present invention to provide a wedge breech block for guns which prevents the closing of the breech block, if no packing ring is inserted into the barrel bottom.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a wedge breech block which comprises a locking member displaceably guided in the wedge breech block parallel to the longitudinal axis of the inner tube of the gun liner, which locking member snaps into the recess for the ring packing at the start of the closing procedure of the breech block in case the ring packing is missing, so that a further movement of the breech block is prevented.

In case of a non-favorable arrangement of the locking member, the latter could also snap into the liner opening of the barrel itself. For this reason, the locking member is set off eccentrically in accordance with the present invention, transversely with respect to the breech block movement direction and radially with respect to the axis of the liner for a predetermined distance, which is about equal to the median radius of the ring packing in the bottom flange. The portion of the locking member, which is supposed to snap into the recess if the ring packing is missing, moves therefore during closing of the breech block along a path, projecting over the packing ring, or intersecting, respectively, the annular recess for the ring packing, so that the locking member snaps in at this intersection and the breech block can be closed only for about half of its closing stroke. If, however, the packing ring is inserted, the breech block can be moved without disturbance by the locking member.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a wedge breech block, wherein the locking member is designed as a bolt disposed parallel to the axis of the liner, said bolt being spring-loadedly received in the "Ice wedge of the breech block. A device must be provided, of course, which permits the withdrawal of the snapped-in locking member. Since it is not desirable, that the locking member, in the preferred case thus the bolt, projects beyond the rear end face of the wedge breech block, in accordance with the present invention, a threaded bore, which is accessible from the rear side of the breech block, is provided in the locking member encased completely flush with the wedge breech block, into which threaded bore, if necessary, a complementary tool can be screwed in for the withdrawal of the locking member.

With these and other objects in view, which will become apparent in the following detailed description, the present invention will be clearly understood in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary longitudinal section of the gun barrel including the breech block;

FIG. 2 is a section along the lines 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary longitudinal section of a portion of the showing in FIG. 1, at an enlarged scale.

Referring now to the drawings, and in particular to FIG. 1, a liner 1, having a longitudinal axis 1', of a gun barrel 2 is secured with its rear end to a breech ring 3. The breech block designed as a wedge breech block 4 is disposed in the breech ring 3 displaceably in the breech ring 3 crosswise to the axis 1 of the liner 1. A bottom flange 5 is provided in the barrel bottom, which bottom flange 5 has an annular recess 6 adapted to receive a ring packing 7, of angular cross-section. Spaced a predetermined distance about equal to the median radius of ring packing 7 from the longitudinal median plane of the gun-barrel, a locking unit 8 containing a locking member 9 is disposed in the wedge breech block 4 parallel to the longitudinal axis 1 of the liner 1, said locking unit 8 being insertable as an integral member into the wedge breech block 4. The locking unit 8 is shown in FIG. 3 at an enlarged scale.

The locking unit 8 comprises substantially a sleeve 10 inserted into a complementary bore 8' of the wedge breech block. The locking member 9 comprising a bolt is displaceably arranged in the sleeve 10 and is therein loaded by a pretensioned pressure coil spring 11. The bolt 9 is screwed at the point 12 to a shaft 13 having a diameter smaller than that of the bolt 9, which shaft 13 is provided with a head portion 14 at its rear end. The latter is encased in a widened portion 14' of the bore 10' of the sleeve 10 and finds an abutment at a shoulder 15 of the widened portion 14' of the sleeve bore 10' in the noninserted state of the locking unit 8 and in the locking position of the bolt 9, respectively. The bolt 9 is brought into this position by the tension of the coil spring 11, which engages at one end the bolt 9 and at the other end a bearing face 16 provided in the sleeve bore 10'.

The path of movement 17 of the locking member, namely of the bolt 9, is indicated in FIG. 2 of the draw ings, along which path the rounded end of the bolt 9 passes upon moving the wedge breech block 4 from its opening position (full lines) into its closing position (dotted lines). If a packing ring 7 is inserted into the recess 6, the wedge breech block 4 can be moved without difficulty, otherwise the bolt 9 snaps at the position 18 (FIG. 2) into the recess 6 and prevents a continuation of the movement of the wedge breech block 4. The wedge breech block 4 and also the bolt 9 perform normally the length W of the path, while in case of a missing packing ring 7 the breech block can only be moved for little more than half of the length W and cannot be closed.

If the bolt 9 is caught in the locking position, the breech block 4 cannot be opened again from its half-closed position, since this movement is likewise prevented by the caught bolt 9. The locking member must be at first withdrawn. For this purpose, :a threaded pocket hole 19 is provided in the head 14, for engagement by a screw bolt or any other suitable tool so that the shaft 13 with the bolt 9 can be easily withdrawn from its locking position.

The sleeve 10 has at its rear end a lateral projection 20, which is completely encased in a corresponding recess 20' of the wedge breech block 4. Two bores 21 and 22 are provided in the lateral projection 20. The bore 21 is threaded and serves the purpose of rendering possible the disassembly of the sleeve 10 from the wedge breech block 4. by insertion into the threaded bore 21 a screw bolt (not shown) pushing against the breech block. The bore 22 receives a portion of the shaft of a screw bolt 23 as well as its head 24. The screw bolt 23 is screwed into a threaded pocket hole 23 of the wedge breech block 4 and secures the sleeve 10 in position. It is apparent from FIG. 1 of the drawings, that no part projects beyond the rear end face of the wedge breech block 4. Suitably the threads are chosen such, that the screw bolt 23 fits also as a pulling or drawing tool into the threaded bore 19, as well as can be screwed into the threaded bore 21, for withdrawal of the sleeve 10.

While I have disclosed one embodiment of the present invention, it is to be understood that this embodiment is given by example only and not in a limiting sense, the scope of the present invention being determined by the objects and the claims.

I claim:

1. A wedge breech block device for guns comprising a breech block wedge including a liner,

a gun barrel,

a barrel bottom having a recess,

a ring packing received in said recess of said barrel bottom,

a locking member displaceably guided in said breech block wedge parallel to the axis of said liner and said locking member falling into said recess in case said ring packing is missing, at the start of the closing procedure of said breech block and preventing a further movement of said breech block.

2. The wedge breech block, as set forth in claim 1,

wherein said locking member is disposed radially to the axis of said liner and perpendicular to the direction of movement of said breech block set-off from the center for the median radius of said ring packing.

3. The wedge breech block, as set forth in claim 1,

wherein said locking member comprises a bolt disposed parallel to the axis of said liner, and

a spring under pretension urging said bolt in forward direction.

4. The wedge breech block, as set forth in claim 1,

which includes means for withdrawal of said fallen-in locking member.

4 5. The wedge breech block, as set forth in claim 4, which includes a structure part comprising at least said locking member, said structure part has a threaded pocket hole accessible from the rear "side of said breech block, and a tool means received in said pocket hole. 6. The wedge breech block, as set forth in claim 3, which includes a sleeve disposed in said breech block wedge,

said bolt and said pretensioned spring received in said sleeve, and said bolt is reciprocating in said sleeve between oppositely disposed abutment means. 7. The wedge breech block, as set forth in claim 6,

wherein said sleeve has a lateral projection at its rear end, said breech block wedge having a complementary recess receiving said lateral projection, said lateral projection having a threaded bore adapted to receive a screw bolt for removal of said sleeve from said breech bolt wedge. 8. The wedge breech block, as set forth in claim 7, wherein 25 said lateral projection has an additional bore,

said breech block wedge has a threaded bore in said complementary recess and disposed coaxially relative to said additional bore, and a screw bolt extending through said additional bore of said lateral projection and received in said threaded bore of said breech block wedge. in order to secure said sleeve to said breech block wedge. 9. The wedge breech block, as set forth in claim 8, wherein said screw bolt has a head, and said head is sunk in said lateral projection of said sleeve. 10. The wedge breech block, as set forth in claim 8, wherein at least two of said threaded bores in said breech block wedge, in said lateral projection and in said stficture part have the same threads.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,132,148 10/1938 Davis.

BENJAMIN A. BORCHELT, Primary Examiner.

S. C. BENTLEY, Assistant Examiner. 

